The Apartment

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The Apartment

1960

2h 5m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

108 Reviews

94%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Insurance worker C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) lends his Upper West Side apartment to company bosses to use for extramarital affairs. When his manager Mr. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray) begins using Baxter's apartment in exchange for promoting him, Baxter is disappointed to learn that Sheldrake's mistress is Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine), the elevator girl at work whom Baxter is interested in himself. Soon Baxter must decide between the girl he loves and the advancement of his career.

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Critics Consensus

Director Billy Wilder's customary cynicism is leavened here by tender humor, romance, and genuine pathos.

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Adam Kempenaar

Filmspotting

Jul 12, 2025

5/5

The Apartment remains remarkably modern in both its construction and sensibility.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

Feb 5, 2025

5/5

Such gritty material is infused with Wilder’s compassion and defined by two towering central performances.

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Jake Cole

Slant Magazine

Apr 18, 2022

Though lighter than Arrows 2018 release on the extras front, Kinos 4K of The Apartment provides the definitive home-video presentation of one of Billy Wilders greatest films.

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Carson Timar

ClapperCast

Aug 29, 2026

Billy Wilder reinvents the American drama with The Apartment, giving a far more grounded look at the debauchery that exists in established industries and breaking apart the American myth while having tons of fun.

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Noah Gittell

Washington City Paper

May 8, 2025

The film’s darkness, culminating in a shocking scene in which a character overdoses on sleeping pills and must be painstakingly revived, doesn’t just serve its sneaky social critique. It also upholds its romance.

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Brian Viner

Daily Mail (UK)

Jan 31, 2025

5/5

The screenplay by Wilder and IAL Diamond is as fresh and sparkling now as it ever was.

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russell g

Jul 20, 2025

It’s a perfect movie. Sad and romantic and funny.

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Renaldo D

@RT30888824 Sep 8, 2026

Wonderful movie—well-directed, entertaining, perfect.

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Kevin S

@allidoisswin Sep 5, 2026

Funny, romantic, witty, and gripping. A story about selling one’s soul and realizing it’s all one has.

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Colby G

@RT22705501 Aug 29, 2026

I really don't get what everyone sees in this movie. An insurance worker loans his apartment to coworkers so they can cheat on their wives/girlfriends in his bed. Coworkers drink up all his alcohol and make screaming sex noises that causes neighbors to question WTF is going over there. Sometimes main character has to wait for coworkers to finish banging to get into his own apartment after work. Sometimes waiting for 2-3 hours. Coworkers tell apt owner, hey get some more alcohol, we drank all your alcohol, thanks. Like that's not repulsive? Main character doesn't have time to wash sheets so he sleeps on the couch or on the bed anyways? Main character uses his inside info to get a better position at work but I mean so what? He doesn't have his own place to that isn't constantly being used by coworkers to screw girls in. Someone fill me in on what I'm missing.

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Tim S.

@Tschoener Mar 14, 2026

Just loved it. Shirley McClain deserved the Oscar. Another Billy Wilder masterpiece.

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Curtis M

@RT24102748 Mar 12, 2026

The Apartment is not only exceptionally well-acted, but it carries a certain irresistible charm that makes it one of the finest films of its era. I can easily see why the widely acclaimed series Mad Men drew inspiration from it—both share that sharp, stylish look into corporate ambition, moral compromise, and the loneliness that can exist behind closed doors.

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Billy Wilder

Director

Jack Lemmon

C.C. Baxter

Shirley MacLaine

Fran Kubelik

Fred MacMurray

Jeff D. Sheldrake

Ray Walston

Joe Dobisch

David Lewis

Al Kirkeby

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Synopsis

Insurance worker C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) lends his Upper West Side apartment to company bosses to use for extramarital affairs. When his manager Mr. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray) begins using Baxter's apartment in exchange for promoting him, Baxter is disappointed to learn that Sheldrake's mistress is Fran Kubelik (Shirley MacLaine), the elevator girl at work whom Baxter is interested in himself. Soon Baxter must decide between the girl he loves and the advancement of his career.

Director: Billy Wilder
Producer: Billy Wilder
Screenwriter: Billy Wilder, I.A.L. Diamond
Production Co: Mirisch Corporation
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jun 15, 1960, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Mar 29, 2016
Runtime: 2h 5m

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